The Handmaid's Tale

By: Margaret Atwood

Narrated by: Claire Danes

Length: 11 hrs and 1 min

Publisher's summary

Audie Award, Fiction, 2013

Margaret Atwood's popular dystopian novel The Handmaid's Tale explores a broad range of issues relating to power, gender, and religious politics. Multiple Golden Globe award-winner Claire Danes (Romeo and Juliet, The Hours) gives a stirring performance of this classic in speculative fiction, one of the most powerful and widely read novels of our time.

After a staged terrorist attack kills the President and most of Congress, the government is deposed and taken over by the oppressive and all-controlling Republic of Gilead. Offred, now a Handmaid serving in the household of the enigmatic Commander and his bitter wife, can remember a time when she lived with her husband and daughter and had a job, before she lost even her own name. Despite the danger, Offred learns to navigate the intimate secrets of those who control her every move, risking her life in breaking the rules in hopes of ending this oppression.

Cover Art by Fred Marcellino. Used with permission of Pippin Properties, Inc.

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©1985 Margaret Atwood (P)2012 Audible, Inc.

Critic reviews

“Claire Danes sparkles in this performance…Danes’s Offred is complex, and her flashes of intense strength highlight her vulnerability. This is a consuming listen, thanks to Danes’s emotional subtleties.” (AudioFile)

Great, and plausible, dystopian story

Claire Danes is an amazing narrator. Margaret Atwood wrote a masterpiece, that hopefully won't become a blueprint for our society.

Great book... the ending is a little different

Wonderful, thoughtful, scarily accurate, and still very relevant to today’s society. Very relatable as a woman. The story his heart wrenching and gripping, the only set back for me was the end. It’s good, and I understand the authors point in ending it that way. But, after building such a relationship with the narrator you would like to hear more of it from her perspective

Claire Danes is masterful

I read the book in high school but wanted to revisit it in light of its resurgent popularity. Claire Danes’ narration is fantastic. Her voices subtle but compelling, bringing even greater attention to the prose, rather than distracting from it. Highly recommended.

Claire Danes Shines

Would you listen to The Handmaid's Tale again? Why?

YES. Claire Danes did an incredible job narrating this book. Her emotions really came out as she read each character.

What was one of the most memorable moments of The Handmaid's Tale?

Much like the main character, Claire Danes' performance evolved with the storyline and made it feel like you were going through the emotions with her.

What does Claire Danes bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Emotion. Anger, frustration, fear, resistance. I felt all of it.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

There was, but I don't want to give it away for anyone who has not read this book.

Any additional comments?

I did read this BEFORE watching the acclaimed series, so I do not yet know how to compare them. I will say that Elisabeth Moss has incredibly large shoes to fill.

A Myriad of Emotions

This novel really gets your heart going! You are emotionally involved in this book from page one, and it just gets better and better.

The writing is absolutely gorgeous; it has a lyrical flow that is a pleasure to read, and even better to listen to. Atwood most definitely has a gift. From the very beginning, the tension and fear take center stage and you are right there with the characters.

What sets this dystopian novel apart (aside from Atwood's writing style, of course) is how believable it is. The situations that seem so out there and extreme have origins that make it plausible, and in turn, terrifying. That, in my opinion, is key when writing for this genre; it's what will set you apart. When I choose to read a dystopian story I want to find a way to connect to it, I want to feel like the world they speak off could very well be the world I live in with a little push in the wrong direction.

Overall, an excellent read that I would highly recommend.

Powerful narration of a classic

Claire Danes' frank narration style does a great service to this powerful story. Though I've read the book multiple times already, hearing this audio version really brought new life to the characters and to the heaviness and relevance of the narrative in our current times.

Dystopian melodrama

This story was captivating, but disturbing. The plot kept me interested in what would become of the narrator and this fictional society, but I was also bothered by the sexual scenarios and the cruelty of the story. Don’t we have enough real problems to deal with?

Light at the End

I enjoyed Claire Danes's narration. She speaks clearly and gives life to Offred. Though the novel ends on a cliffhanger, there is hope that Offred escaped. Without this ending, the novel would have been completely depressing.

Outstanding!

All around amazing! Claire Danes was an excellent narrator and delivered a stellar performance. d

Favorite Novel - Even Better Narration

This has long been one of my very favorite works of fiction. I've read the book multiple times over the years. But this was a worthwhile audiobook purchase in addition to the book itself. Claire Danes blows the narration out of the water! Her voice has the unique quality of being both captivating and creepy. Like the book, I couldn't "put this down." Highly recommend it both to newcomers and old fans!